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Marx's Letter:

Sunday, April 21, 1867

London, England

Dear Ghalib,

Day before yesterday I received a letter from my friend, Angels. It ended with a couplet that impressed me very much. After much effort, I learnt that it was written by some Indian poet named Mirza Asadullah Khan Ghalib. Brother, it’s wonderful! I had never envisaged that revolutionary feelings for independence from slavery would ripen so early in a country like India! Yesterday, I got some more poetic works of yours from a Lord’s personal library. This couplet is highly appreciable!:

Hum ko maloom hai jannat ki haqeeqat lekin,

Dil ko khush rakhne ko Ghalib ye khayal achha hai.

(I am aware of the reality of heaven,

But, Ghalib! It’s good to console your heart.)

In your next edition of poetry do write in detail addressing workers: "Landlords, administrators, and religious leaders sap your toil’s rewards by taking you to the fanciful world of paradise." Rather, it would be nicer if you write some lines on:

"Duniya bhar ke mazdooron, muttahid ho jao"

(World labourers, get united)

I am not well aware of the Indian style and poetic treatment. You are a poet, you write something substantive being under poetic restrictions. Whatever, the sole purpose is to invigorate the masses with its message. Moreover, I would advise you to quit composing leisure writings like ghazal or quatrain and move over to free verses so that in least time you can write more and the more you write the more the wretched people would have to read and mull over.

I am dispatching the Indian version of the Communist Manifesto along with the first volume whose translation is unfortunately not available. If you like it, next time I will send you some more literature. At present, India has been converted into a den of the English imperialists. And only the collective effort of the exploited and downtrodden masses or workers can liberate them from the clutches of the perpetrators.

You should study the modern philosophies of the West than the outdated and unworkable thoughts of Asian scholars; and do not write the fables and praises of the Mughal kings and nawabs and create the literature that takes up the revolutionary cause of the masses. Revolution is imminent. No force in this world can restrain it. That time is coming soon when the tradition of guru and disciple will fade away.

I wish India a steady path toward revolution.

Yours,

Karl Marx

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Ghalib's Reply:

September 9, 1867

I received your letter along with the Communist Manifesto. How would I reply? First, it’s too difficult to understand what you talk. Second, I have grown too weak to write as well as speak. Today, I wrote a letter to a friend, so, I thought of writing to you too.

Your view about Farhaad (reference in Ghalib’s one poem) is mistaken. He is not any worker as you perceived him. Rather, he was a lover but his perception toward love did not impress me. He was lunatic in love and would think of committing suicide all the time for his beloved’s sake. And you talk of which inquilab (revolution)? That is a past, ended ten years ago! Now the Britishers roam broad-chested and everyone eulogises them here. The discipline of royalty and lavishness has become a thing of the past; and the tradition of guru and disciple is losing its charm.

If you don’t believe, pay a visit to Delhi and see all in flesh and blood..... And that’s not confined to Delhi only, Lucknow’s essence too is disappearing...where have those mannerisms gone...where are those gentlemen! Now, you predict of which revolution?

And in the middle of your letter I also learnt you talk of changing the mode of poetry writing. Mind you, poetry cannot be created but it comes to you naturally. And my case is distinct. When ideas flow in, they just merge into any forms, ghazal or quatrains.

I believe, Ghalib’s style is unmatched in the world of poetry, and because of that, the kings have already gone and you want me to be deprived of the nawabs and patrons who take care of me...!? What goes wrong if I say a few lines in their praise!

What is philosophy and what it has to do with life, who knows better than me? My dear, which modern thinking you talk about? If you are interested in it, you better read Vedanta and Wahdat-ul-Wajood. And stop just harping on thought after thought, if you can, do some work in this direction...you are an Englishman, do me a favour. Please convey a recommendation letter to the viceroy, requesting for reissue of my pension....

Now I am feeling very tired. So, I am putting an end to it.

Humbly yours,

Ghalib

Palm: not love but affection covers

One thing I really appreciated was that even though she's clearly no longer the assassin she used to be, we got to see her underlying cruel streak again when she put that empty ice stone inside Jin Mu. She lured him into Gwido with the ice stone and tricked him into thinking she was helping him, allowing him to believe that he was finally about to get the power he always wanted. But instead, she condemned him to a slow, agonizing death. The way she told him that this type of death suited him perfectly and the coldly satisfied look on her face as stared down at him while he was on his knees in pain literally had me screeching!!!! I also adore the fact that Yeong knew her soul was going to disappear soon and that the fate of the world was at stake, but she still took the time to get her revenge. She was not about to let Jin Mu get away with what he did to her without facing any consequences.

And also that whole scene with the Unanimous Assembly??? We really get to see her cunning, calculating nature front and center. I was so not expecting her to tell everyone that Jang Uk failed to perform his duties by knowingly sparing a soul-shifter. By exposing him, she forces Uk's hand and ultimately gives him no choice but to come and face her. She also knows that the only reason they left him alive with the ice stone inside him was so that he could hunt down soul shifters. By telling them that Uk still has a soul shifter left to take care of, she buys him time. Once again, we see Yeong manipulating a situation and knowing exactly what to say to get the outcome she wants. I also loved the part where they ask her about Jin Mu, and she straight up tells them that she killed him. She was just like yeah I put the ice stone in him and now he's going to wither away and die in Gwido. She gave no fucks.

And we see other characters noticing that something is off with her. You could tell the crown prince knew something was different during that scene with the Unanimous Assembly. The look on his face after she callously said that she would take the ice stone out of Uk if necessary was sooooo sus.

Even though Yeong was absolutely adorable as Jin Bu-yeon, and the dark, brooding season 2 Jang Uk was very sexy, I'm so glad we got to see their season 1 dynamic at the very end. In their last scene together, Jang Uk has his bright, playful energy back and we got to see the Mu-deok glare again from Yeong!!!

But although Yeong is no longer the Jin Bu-yeon we met at the beginning of the season and Jang Uk is no longer the brooding monster, we can still see how those three years apart changed them. Uk has a maturity that he didn't have in season 1 and Yeong's time as Bu-yeon has made her more open with her affections.

It was nice to see them bickering again during their last scene and I'm obsessed with the way Yeong told Uk that he only came this far because she was his master and he better be grateful and treat her right. Like it's very clear by the end of the show that Yeong is the boss of him. She calls the shots and he would literally do anything she asked him to, and I love that for her.

Situation #1: “There is one problem. Your wife is locked in Cheonbugwan’s prison for sorcerers. I can open the door to Gwido but I will loose Jin Mu’s trust and we will miss the golden opportunity to completely decimate his powerful underground organization in one go. What will you do? I will do as you say.”

Jang Uk’s Decision #1: Frantically tries to locate wife using jade egg & makes a bee-line for Gwido. Tells CP to feign ignorance and step aside.

Situation #2: “I am a soul shifter. This body is Jin BuYeon’s but soul is someone else’s. I ran away because I did not want to get caught. What will you do now?”

Jang Uk’s Decision #2: Hides her soul-shifter scars, tells CP his wife is safe with him, tells her that only he can get “this close”. Stalls decision & gets antsy whenever she’s slipping up in front of CP & refering to BuYeon in 3rd person.

Situation #3: “You can ask what you’re curious about.”

Jang Uk’s Decision #3: He needn’t ask. He knows but vehemently refuses to acknowledge deathly afraid that he will have to fulfill his duty (as a mage that slays soul-shifters). Now we see why he blatantly refused to join all the dots coz otherwise the minute she interlaced her fingers with his or spoke about sitting atop a large tree, his conscience knew who it was. He was & is delaying the impossible but inevitable decision. He feigns ignorance and leaves her — his entire world behind (once in Jinyowon annex-prison and now in Gwido) — to not be that person to kill her. He leaves her behind, alive, for however long she has left.

Situation #4: “Your wife exposed all the sins you committed — of how you neglected your duty, feigned ignorance about knowing a soul-shifter, and spared the soul-shifter’s life. Where are you going? We are discussing what you’ve done.”

Jang Uk’s decision #4: Realizes his poisonous Master publicly coerced him into a corner so he has no choice but to courageously face the situation/do the right thing.

Also basically tells everyone to f-off & walks away coz now he has a reason and an excuse to go back & be with her. Finds her. Loves her most tenderly. Marries her. Lives one last day and one last night with her as husband/wife before things fall apart.

✨️ the dream pairing that they were ✨️

in the end, naksu/yeong’s choice to not train her fighting skills anymore makes perfectly sense in a trauma-healing perspective. 

she became an assassin not by choice, but by jin mu’s manipulation. she was just a kid. alone. it was the only way to survival. 

as mu-deok, she chooses to live a peaceful life with jang uk, giving up on her powers and sword. this choice was taken away from her and ONCE AGAIN jin mu used her. 

he brought naksu back and she killed the only one who cared about her. the only one who really protected her no matter what.

as jin bu-yeon, she could learn a life that didn’t require training and exhaustion. when meeting jang uk once again, her soul felt save. she could bloom without her traumas. 

then her memories came back. imagine THE PAIN to know that you killed the man you love. she embraces the blame and leaves - because she is afraid to do it again. to bring more pain and violence into his life. 

because naksu is a powerful bad bitch and we love her, i know, but she is also alone and traumatized. 

when she marries uk, is as cho yeong. it’s a chance to live a life she had lost.  

so, after jin seol-ran lets her stay in that body, she is able to live happily with jang uk as jang yeong. she is FINALLY able to say enough, to choose something else over violence. to help her friends with their domestic problems and live a happy long life with her hubby. 

there is no real need to go back to training. she is not in “survival mode” anymore. she has divine powers to protect herself now. she deserves this rest. yeong is at peace and healing. 

.

I keep coming back to this scene. I can almost hear their heart break as their hands part.

“I had buried my memories, but you took them out and helped me face them. You held my hand when I never thought I could. You helped me sleep when I could not. And for that… I cannot stop anymore.

So I will be the brazier on a summer day. This time, I will be the one waiting… until you begin to miss me.”

They were happy for 5 minutes. 5 fecken minutes!!!!

For Yeong: She had a strong inkling for who she really was since the night she comforted him. She deliberately suppressed joining the dots coz 1) she sees how hurt/confused/mad/withdrawn he gets whenever they both realize she has reminded him of the past/of his dead ex. Not only does she wants him to find closure and move on, but she also wants him to like her for who she is without confusion. 2) she finds it impossible to believe in the remotest possibility that she — who loves him to death & who loves him far more than he does — was the one that gravely hurt him both physically and emotionally. She cannot fathom hurting him even slightly, let alone killing him brutally and she cannot fathom loosing him or distancing herself from him. Even before YunOk forces her to face it, from her interactions with Uk, Yul, Kim Doju it is clear that she knows but has just been delaying the inevitable.

For Uk: She once told him “wait for me and I will come to you” and wait he did all these years — hoping against hope that she’ll return to him and when she wasn’t returning to him, he wanted to (die &) go to her. He resists despite & especially coz of all the uncanny similarities that stump him coz it is way too tempting to believe it’s her. 1) He is very aware of what he wishes for (remember how hard his heart beat when he tried to find the blue flowers in her eyes) so he’s doubly wary. Thus, he lets his head prevail even while his heart hopelessly responds to the way she makes him feel coz how in the world could it be her when this woman can see energy and open Jinyowon. If only he knew that two souls can cohabitate a physical form, he’d have long recognized her. 2) Not only this, he’s a soul starved for love/warmth/affection and as guilty as he initially is that he’s extremely drawn to everything about this new woman, and he knows all his confusion is hurting her (and hurting her hurts him) so he struggles but inches forward and attempts to see her for just who she is now.

The light wearing dark attire.

The shadow wearing bright attire.

And both of them together at the link of day(bright) and night(dark).